Anushka Sharma on rivalry among female actors: We are very busy, no time for nonsensical bickering

What does a catfight mean? According to the Oxford Dictionary, the simple meaning is ‘a fight between women’. But thanks to incessant stories of catfights between female Bollywood actors, the term has gone on to become famous or rather infamous on a mass level. However, Anushka Sharma, who has shared screen space with other female actors in multiple films, doesn’t see any logic to it.

“I don’t think such stories come out anymore. Mujhe lagta hai log expect bhi nahi karte (I don’t think people expect them anymore either). I feel now, it’s only the media that – sometimes – talks about such things because unfortunately, some people feel that we [female actors] aren’t professionals. The misconception is that, ‘arrey, ladkiyan hai (they are girls), so they will just come in and start fighting with each other’,” she says.

Anushka, who has worked in several multi-starrers and two-heroine projects, has no qualms in calling it a “redundant” thought. “We [female actors] have a lot of work and various things to do. We are very busy, handling our lives as well as careers. We really don’t have the time to do such nonsensical bickering. We are not [standing] on the streets. Like mature people, we have a lot of responsibility towards ourselves,” she says.

Win-win situation

After Zero (2018), Anushka is yet to announce her new film, but she doesn’t seem to be in a hurry to sign on the dotted lines. Known for making unconventional choices – as an actor and producer, she has a clear idea about what’s her kind of film. “The best situation for me to be in – as an actor as well as the audience – would be to watch a film which is entertaining but it must also leave some thoughts – in a very subtle manner – in your mind to ponder over,” she says.

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Calling it the “best kind of cinema”, Anushka feels one “can also find a wider audience with such films.” She explains: “I feel films have to do something – elicit some kind of a reaction, emotion or start some kind of a thought pattern in people. That’s the strength of cinema. When a film does that in an entertaining fashion, then you are in a win-win situation.”

The real image

Happy to work and “live life” in her own way, Anushka says thanks to her personality, she has no option but to be candid and truthful. “Few people who really know me will vouch for the fact that I am not dishonest at all about who I am. I don’t want to create a rosy and perfect image for myself. I can’t always have a smile on my face and talk to someone as per an image that he/she may have of me or pose the way I want people to see me,” she says.

At the same time, the Ae Dil Hai Mushkil (2016) actor is clear that she can’t “work hard on faking things.” “I can’t do that because it’s too taxing for my mental health, emotional health as well as spiritual health. So for me, it’s important that I stay normal, real and true to myself. I personally don’t want to fake anything because it requires a lot of hard work to fake things,” she says.

‘I admire Kat’s dedication’

Anushka, who has had Katrina Kaif as co-star in films such as Jab Tak Hai Jaan (2012) and Zero, says: “I have always got along very well with her. I really admire Katrina’s dedication and hard work that she has always put in [her work]. She is someone, who works hard relentlessly and isn’t pretentious at all. With her, what you see is what you get, and I really like that about her. Plus, I’ve always found her very easy to hold a conversation with. So, there’s never been any uncomfortable or awkward situation ever.”

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